2026 GOOD DESIGN AWARD winners announced! The GRAND AWARD goes to Yamaha Corporation’s EAD50 Electronic Acoustic Drum module

1,484 winners were selected out of the 5,111 entries screened

For this year's GOOD DESIGN AWARD, a rigorous screening lasting around six months took place with a new system of Chair and Vice-chairs and a message of "design that advances vision.” 1,484 entries out of the 5,111 items in the screening received awards. Click here to see all award results.

The GRAND AWARD decision is made by agreement among the Chair, Vice-chairs, and the leaders of each unit!

The GOOD DESIGN AWARD is the only comprehensive design evaluation and promotion mechanism in Japan. All the judges look at every kind of design, both tangible and intangible, from various perspectives and evaluate them fairly, thereby further broadening the domain and possibilities of design. This year, the judges again selected the GRAND AWARD and other SPECIAL AWARDS at the Special Awards Panel in September. Twenty designs, one top design chosen from each unit, are candidates for the GRAND AWARD.

A total of 24 judges comprising the Chair, Vice-chairs, and unit leaders participated in the GRAND AWARD Selection, during which presentations were given by all candidates for the GRAND AWARD, and discussion and voting took place.

After a series of discussions and votes, four candidates for the GOOD DESIGN GRAND AWARD appeared – EAD50, Face Recognition Walkthrough Gate, Tokiwabashi Bridge, and Disaster Relief Store – and voting took place once again. As a result, EAD50 secured the majority of votes and was selected for the GOOD DESIGN GRAND AWARD.

![images05](images05.jpg "A user commented, "It has been scrupulously updated since the previous model, the EAD10, and its analytical capability has been improved."")

Design with perfection, vision, and timeliness

During the GRAND AWARD screening, the judges all took to the microphone and exchanged opinions earnestly while revealing what they were voting for. Where any points were unclear, questions were put to judges familiar with the field, and a lively discussion ensued.

In sharing the focus of this year's screening, Chair Nakagawa said, "I evaluated the entries from three main perspectives. The first was the degree of perfection. The second was vision. The third and final one was timeliness.”

Vice-chair Suzuki followed this up, saying, “When we think about vision, there is also an element of the length of the time axis which is connected to it. If we don't have a vision, we tend to jump at short-term gains. It is precisely by having a vision about what we are going to make happen that we no longer stop merely at short-term gains. Design is often viewed as a trend. In this context, being able to look at design over a long time frame is a great strength. The degree of perfection is also important, of course. Without perfection, the design will not last over a long time frame in the first place.”

"The EAD50 blends the sound unique to analog instruments with a sound pursued through digital technology. Yamaha Corporation is a company that brings together sound professionals. The fact that the core message is incorporated in a minimal form within an extremely simple design can surely be evaluated very highly," one judge said. "At present, when we are seeing a return to analog with items such as film cameras and cassette tapes, I feel that seeking physicality is one of the major trends of this era. The way in which digital capabilities have been brought together so well with an analog device in the context of this change in the times is also an attractive point. From the user’s perspective, too, it is perhaps a product in which they can feel this timeliness,” another commented. A lively exchange of opinions ensued about issues such as the possibility that “designers can engage fearlessly in product creation, and design can engender joy and depict a brighter future” and “the beauty of the design form.”

An unprecedented musical experience for drummers

This year's GRAND AWARD winner, the EAD50, is a unique sound system from Yamaha that enables the drummers themselves to easily carry out their own settings and adjust mixing and effects in real time through intuitive operations, enabling smart sound creation.

In his acceptance speech, Yamaura said, "Yamaha has been working to create new value to enrich people's hearts from the angles of both technology and sensibility, with sound and music as our starting point. We believe that design is not simply a matter of arranging form and beauty, but an extremely important activity that creates dialogue and empathy among people and proposes new values to society."

He continued, “In recent years, the way people relate to music has seen changes. Many people have become creators themselves. In such an era, what is required of Yamaha is not merely to continue producing high-quality musical instruments, but also to present new forms of music and ways of enjoying them to society, and to foster a new musical culture together with users. EAD50 was born right in the midst of this challenge. While keeping the appeal of acoustic drums intact, we are pleased to have offered an unprecedented musical experience by connecting the enjoyment of performing and broadcasting. As a result, many users have formed new and original playing styles and communities. This award is not just a recognition of a single product, but also a recognition and encouragement of our attitude at Yamaha of continuing to push the boundaries of the possibilities of music. We intend to go on creating a new musical culture together with people around the world, without fear of change, and to take on new challenges that move hearts through the power of sound and music," he said, expressing the company’s resolve for the future.

Kawada said, "The EAD50 is a bit of a nerdy product, but I think its value could be appreciated because all the judges approached each item with careful attention and spent a lot of time discussing them repeatedly. Once again, I would like to express my respect to the judges. I feel that the award has shone a light not only on this innovative idea, but also on the careful craftsmanship in order to make it a reality, and on our sincere corporate stance. In doing so, it illuminates what design in Japan should be about and what our future direction ought to be," he said, expressing his gratitude for receiving the award.

Futo said, “The GOOD DESIGN AWARD is a special award for designers. I am aware that this award was given to recognize not only the designer but also the planning, design, development, and manufacturing teams as a whole. I would like to share my joy at receiving this award with my team members."

Evaluation based on “design that advances vision”

Chair Nakagawa talked about how “This year, we strongly proclaimed the message of ‘design that advances vision.’ In a world of riches where goods are so abundant, we are perhaps in an era where the meaning of nevertheless creating new things is being questioned,” he said.

He went on, “Who makes something, and for what purpose? Isn’t this a time in which such points are important? The EAD50, this year’s winner, is a product that could only have been created by Yamaha's combination of acoustic instrument production and synthesizer technology. It is evaluated highly because it is an excellent product which contributes significantly to their vision of 'creating a future where individuality shines through the power of sound and music,'" he explained about the reason for the GRAND AWARD choice.

"Since the GOOD DESIGN AWARD is a place to evaluate designs one by one, it can only be an evaluation of this design in this moment. Nevertheless, I conducted the screening with the hope that we could evaluate each design with a sense of the background formed by the company's activities as a whole and their activities over a long period of time. I encountered many wonderful designs, which made the screening fun. I look forward to encountering many more designs from which I can sense a vision next year and beyond," he summed up.

The GOOD DESIGN EXHIBITION 2026 will be held from October 31!

"G-TEN, the GOOD DESIGN EXHIBITION 2026" will be held at Tokyo Midtown in Roppongi, Tokyo, from Saturday, October 31 to Wednesday, November 4. This is a big event where you can be the first to see, touch, buy, and incorporate GOOD DESIGN AWARD-winning designs from various genres symbolizing the current era into your life. All of the award winning objects of the GOOD DESIGN AWARD 2026 will be on display in this exhibition. In addition, there will be talks by judges and winning designers, G-TEN Radio broadcast live from the open studio, and a stamp trail to enjoy while walking around the venue. This year, we will also introduce regional design awards in a special exhibition. Thirty-five designs recently recognized by the Hiroshima City Good Design Award will be exhibited, and products from five award-winning companies will also be on sale. Please enjoy this opportunity to come across designs you love at the venue.

GOOD DESIGN EXHIBITION 2026 Period：October 31 ~ November 4 Time：11:00 ~ 19:00 (JST) *November 4, ~ 18:00 Venue：Tokyo Midtown Roppongi (9-7-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo) Free admission with no booking required. (Admission restrictions may be imposed due to the number of visitors.) Organizer：Japan Institute of Design Promotion (JDP) Supporters：Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry / The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency / Tokyo Metropolitan Government / The Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry / Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) / ASEAN Promotion Centre on Trade, Investment and Tourism / Nihon Keizai Shimbun / NHK / World Design Organization

GOOD DESIGN STORE TOKYO by NOHARA Pop-up store Period：October 31 ~ November 4 Time：11:00 ~ 20:00 (10/31: 11:00 ~ 22:00; 11/4: 11:00 ~ 18:00) Venue：Tokyo Midtown, Galleria B1F Management：Nohara Group, Inc.

Hiroshima Good Design Award Special Exhibition Period：October 31 ~ November 4 Time：11:00 ~ 19:00 (JST) *November 4, ~ 18:00 Venue：Tokyo Midtown, Galleria B1F Exhibitor：Hiroshima City Industrial Promotion Center

Opening today! “My Favorite Design 2026”

In advance of the GOOD DESIGN EXHIBITION, the GOOD DESIGN AWARD Judges’ Selection “My Favorite Design 2026” will be held at GOOD DESIGN Marunouchi over three periods from October 15. This is the earliest exhibition of winning designs from 2026. The exhibition introduces 88 items, selected by each of the 101 judges as their one personal favorite, along with messages explaining their choices. Talks on the exhibition design and areas of personal interest are also scheduled at the venue. The details will be announced here as soon as they are confirmed.

My Favorite Design 2026 1st Period “Designing Everyday Beauty” October 15 ~ 29 2nd Period “Making the Future” October 31 ~ November 13 3rd Period “Rethinking Society” November 15 ~ 29 Time：11:00 ~ 20:00 （The venue closes at 17:00 on the final day of each period.）